Horticultural Therapy

It works… cause it requires much patience and creativity. It’s healing because we get closer to mother nature! Just love the experience! My art piece to share with everyone.

Over active schedule…

Life here seemed mundane for a while, then the next second, it becomes overwhelmingly busy.

Course structure is basically simple. You need to attend the core subjects, and you have extra 6 credit hours for electives. On average, each elective is 2 points. Minimum of 16 points and maximum of 25 points per semester.

Thank goodness I’m exempted from taking subjects like Basic Biology, Basic Chemistry, Calculus and English. But the most headache part is that others are required to convert from Mandarin to English, while I have to convert from English to Mandarin.

And because of all these exemptions, I have to take more elective courses!

So here’s a list classes I am required to attend:

Core: 1. Chinese Language 2. Humanities & Care to the society 3. Life Education 4. Sports and Health Electives: 1. Web database management system 2. Genes and Diseases 3. International Relations 4. World Cultures 5. JingSi Aphorisms 6. Classical Piano Appreciation 7. Introduction to world religions

 

In addition, I have to exercise and attend Biology and Chemistry as usual… From what I see right now, I might have cramped too much into my schedule… But what to do, there are so many interesting elective courses I can attend!!!

 

Till then, more to come. Hope that I can show everyone the beauty of autumn here in my next post!

25th Anniversary of Tzu Chi Medical Mission

Today marks a quarter century of Tzu Chi Medical Mission. For the past 25 years, the doctors have served so many people in need of medical care, and the patients were, and still are, very much like family to them.

During the presentation of some medical cases, it showed how much the doctors cared towards their patients. All of a sudden, you see hope in the future. A future where doctors treat their patients as if they are flesh and blood. A doctor who tried their best to save lives and not take fortune and fame into consideration.

Doctors and staffs from all 6 hospitals scattered all over Taiwan came gathered during this magnificent ceremony to present everyone this beautiful hand-sign language.

And after that, a magnificent dinner surprise which took everyone’s breath away…

The best buffet dinner ever! Even the decorations and the colours made everyone smile!

And ice-creams too! I know the food looked VERY nice, but please don’t lick your computer screen okay? =D

Anyways, the day ended very well and tomorrow’s dinner, they’re having special mooncake festival dinner! How am I ever going to slim down with meals like this everyday?!

A New Chapter of Life

It has been 24 hours since my arrival.

Marking a new beginning of my new life in Taiwan.

Along the way, I’ll be posting up some tips along the way to survive in Hualien, especially if you’re from the Tzu Chi Big Family.

 

So here goes,

TIP #01:	Not all Tzu Chi University (TCU) students agree with the Buddhist Foundation itself, and frequently, if you are not friendly enough, they would find those Tzu Chi People (慈濟人) as aliens.
	So, try your best to blend in with the group of friends. Like I, although I insist on being a vegetarian, I don’t talk much Tzu Chi stuffs in front of them, for they may not like it very much. Try be befriend with those around first. And you shall find much joy in mingling with them.

 

Till then, will keep everyone posted from time to time, and hopefully with photos too!

Miss you dearly

有您在的日子果然不一樣。現在您要走了，大家都有點不捨。

這次回去是要完成孝子的責任，大家都會祝福您。

和賢菩薩，祝福您與家人平安吉祥，更祝福您母親早日康復。

People change as time changes

I used to be grumpy when we worked together, but today, we are one of the closest friends ever.

As I see it, when we forgive and forget, we cherish more of our friendship.

Didn’t expect till today, we could cam-whore together. Haha.

And you could see me looking fat in the photo…

 

Anyways, I took this photograph during the TIMA Thanksgiving Concert session, and I personally find the shot quite intriguing.

A friendship built in 5 months that lasts forever…

Time is short. This short 5 months has been so much fun and I certainly learned so much from each other.

I’ll let the photos do the talking.

It’s great to know these friends who could help each other when in need. They are willing to tell you your faults and let you grow and learn.

Thanks. I’ve learned so much from all of you.

Final Year Project

I’ve been dealing with tetracycline for a while, and here’s a quick overview of what I’ve done.

Basically, I just check for the presence of tet(A) and tet(B) genes, which are involved in tetracycline antibiotics resistance.

Today, while testing out all the Expasy, RasMol, SwissProt etc, I found the structure to the protein encoded by the tet(A) gene.

The protein actually pumps in one hydrogen ion into the bacteria, and pumps out one tetracycline antibiotic molecule out into the environment (called the H+/Tetracycline antiporter). You can see the channel as circled lightly in red in the above photo. (Cross Section of the pump)

 

The image below shows the longitudinal section of the pump. You can see that the pump consist of many alpha-helix secondary protein structure.

 

Anyways, just to share with everyone about this.

Getting cancer soon…

Tomorrow is the day where I have to sit for a test called Oncology. And the section tested would involve all the cancer pathways and the dysregulation of all these pathways lead to cancer formation (carcinogenesis).

So here’s an overview of the cancer pathways:

1. The AKT/PKB Pathway

 

This pathway is involved in the cell proliferation and growth.

 

2. Cyclins and Cell Cycle Regulation

 

This pathway is a continuation of previous pathway. This pathway regulates DNA replication and cell proliferation.

 

4. The Famous p53 Pathway – One of the most important cell guardian

This pathway makes sure that everything is right. Not too much of proliferation, induce repair mechanisms and apoptosis in cases of DNA damage. It basically protects a cell from going crazy. Mutation in gene expressing this p53 protein eventually leads to cancer formation, no doubt.

 

4. Epidermal Growth Factor (EGF) Pathway

 

Part of the pathways was learnt, and again, they all regulate cell proliferation and growth.

 

5. (Summary of) Molecular Mechanisms of Cancer Pathway

I think this is the most complex diagram ever constructed. This is how complex cancer is. 

6. (Another Summary of) Pathways in Human Cancer

This is exactly what I’m studying at this moment. This PDF is available at http://www.cellsignal.com/about/marketing/pdfs/cancer_poster.pdf

As you can see, the pathways are driving everyone crazy, and these are all normal cell processes. Without them, we cannot survive. Yet, dysregulation of these pathways lead to cancer formation. Why dysregulation occurs? Too many factors already, which include chemical and physical exposures, cellular processes etc. Most frequently, food is one of the main causes of cancer. So, YOU ARE WHAT YOU EAT.

By the way, too much of stress do induce cancer formation… and I’m a bit stressed out… Hope that I don’t get cancer because of this… CHOY!!!

Also, if you like the other posters, do not hesitate to download them from http://www.abcam.com/index.html?pageconfig=resource&rid=11069&pid=10628. Credit goes to them for creating such fantastic posters that makes everyone crazy!!!

Cure for sickness?

I know that prevention is better than cure… but sometimes, when the cold virus hits, you really have to take measures to heal faster…

Instead of going to the Doctors, I’d rather spend money on Vitamin C… 1000mg a day… no harm if you take twice or trice a day…

Then, I head over to sports stadium for exercise… Badminton for 4 days in a row… do sweat a lot…

And gargle your sore throat with Listerine… I know it stings a lot, but you feel very comfortable after that… also, don’t forget to drink lots of water… it helps.

Take hot shower on from head to toe… then cold shower for below the chin… Cold water will cool down your body, while the hot water will keep your head warm and comfortable…

Sleep with thick blankets and jackets to sweat all night… the more you sweat, the better you are the next morning… haha

 

And see… without antibiotics, without anti-pyretic drugs, without flu meds… I’m feeling so much better already… =)

**May or may not work for all people… I’ve done this multiple times… that’s why I know it’s effective for me.

Case of H1N1 in UTAR

The thing is… as I said before… some selfish UTAR students happily spread their flu and cough in UTAR… and now, Group 1 of Biomed has to be quarantined due to a friend getting ill… confirmed case of A(H1N1).

So, not much I can do here. People, please be careful and maintain your well being… eat more fruits and pump yourself with lots of vitamin C.

Till then. Take care everyone.

 

P/S: I’m disappointed with my photography… don’t ask why.

Don’t be selfish…

Things have gone from bad to worse…

More people are getting sick these days…

The case of H1N1 is getting severe…

I just don’t seem to understand why those who have flu or cold or cough or sneezing do not want to wear a mask?!

Instead, those who are healthy are wearing them… what’s going on?!

So everyone, if you’re sick,

it doesn’t matter whether it’s cold, flu, cough or sore throat, for heaven’s sake – WEAR A MASK!!!

You’re protecting yourself from other people’s pathogens and keeping others safe from yours as well!

Please be considerate, don’t infect others, don’t happily spread what you have to other people…

Till then, those who are sick, get well soon. And those who are not, boost your immune system, stay healthy.

Scientific Commercials…

Nothing is so scientific about the commercials, but… what a creative idea to run commercials like that… well done BioRad…

 

 

But still, I must say this… BioRad… your reagents and equipments are very expensive LOL! But, what you pay is what you get! YEA!

Thanks to CheeShin for his videos on Facebook… haha

Ascaris Lumbricoides

People…

PLEASE DO NOT PROCEED ANY FURTHER IF YOU FIND THAT THE FOLLOWING PHOTOS ARE GROSSING YOU OUT!

THIS IS TO AVOID YOU VOMITING IN FRONT OF YOUR PC, JUST LIKE HOW OUR LECTURER MADE US FELT SO UNEASE WHEN WE SAW THE PHOTOS…

This was what happened today… Dr. Haresh was very nice to share all his photo collections on roundworms… He said that these looked like ‘Mee Goreng’ (Fried Noodles)…

These are some of the photos… please proceed with caution!!! Don’t say that I didn’t warn you…

This is a roundworm… caused by faecal-oral passage via hands…

 

 

This is the ‘mee goreng’ he described to us…

The route of infection as follows:

Consumed eggs –> hatch in intestine –> larvae penetrate gut –> travel through liver to lungs –> up the bronchi and trachea –> and swallowed again and stay in the intestines…

 

Because in some cases, the worms are already so big, they cannot be swallowed easily… instead, the come out like this…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And here is a photo of them in your intestine… *You are encouraged to enlarge to look at the worms in details…*

 

 

Treatment? Use Mebendazole and Pyrantel… And almost immediately after use… You’ll see something like this…

 

 

GROSS RIGHT?!

 

Before Roland and I left the lecture hall, I actually joked to Dr. Haresh…

Me: Dr. Haresh, had your lunch already?

Dr.: No, not yet.

Me: Want to join us?

Dr:…

Me: We’re having noodles with extra taugheh (bean sprouts)…

Dr.: Yer… you so cruel la…

Hahaha…… by the way, our beloved Dr. Haresh is a vegetarian...

选择早醒的自己

最近都很早睡，很早醒。

总是觉得，虽然累，但是一整天的精神都在。

所以，大家也要早点睡呀！

证严上人曾经说过：“晚上11时已经很迟了。 再过一个小时已经是明天了。还不去睡觉!”

哈哈！ 所以。。。 记得哦！早点睡觉，不要熬夜。

熬夜对身体不好，肝脏不能有效地排毒啊!

Something gross and EEEeeuuuuu….

Welcome to the world of microbes…

The one in yellow spots are known as Staphylococcus aureus… it’s golden yellow in colour when it is cultured in Mannitol Salt Agar (MSA)…

That is the very bacteria which gained resistance in the first place, better known as Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA).

This sample came from a nasal swab… that’s how it looks like when you culture the swab from your upper respiratory tract…

 

Next… let’s take a look at what is growing on your skin…

See…. the white spots and some green fungi…

I personally don’t think that the fungi is due to contaminations. So, if you can see, there are lots of microbes growing on your skin…

The white spot is better known as Staphylococcus epidermidis, which is another opportunistic bacteria (causes illnesses when you are immunocompromised)…

 

CONCLUSION: Keep yourself clean… Wash your hands often. Make sure you don’t sneeze on other people, and don’t wipe your nose with your hands….

Till then. Happy eating!!!

 

Blood Donation – Day 2

Since the haematology lecture class for today has been cancelled, I arrived early to help in the blood donation drive.

The very first person who donated blood today was ah Mok…

Getting the needle into the vein…

Some of the counters around…

The reception counter…

I don’t know what happened to RQ. We were chatting and all of a sudden, he said that he’s kinda moody since the beginning of the sem… then he showed this face… misleading… haha

The ABO blood group and Haem concentration measurement counter.

The souvenir counter…

Equipments preparation… injections for local anaesthesia…

Donation room…

Some of the donors sharing some light moments with one of the best nurses in the room…

 

This looked more like doctor and patient conversation…

Blood storage

And the most important one… Refreshment! and introducing, the EATING MACHINE!!!!

James was really like an eating machine… he ate and ate and ate… non stop… you can literally see him walking around with food in his hands – from bread to drinks… wah sae…

Some of the UTAR staffs joining in to help too…

   

     

I left the place around 1.30 pm… kinda tired… haha… but anyway, I’m glad to shoot photos around the place.